Rufus B. Burrus Papers

Dates: l918-1989.

Friend of Harry S. Truman and legal adviser to the Truman family; Assistant County Counselor of Jackson County, l929-4l; U.S. Army officer and member of the Reserve Officers Association, l929-75; associated with the Harry S. Truman Library, Inc., the Harry S. Truman Library, and the Harry S. Truman Library for National and International Affairs, l955-90

The papers of Rufus B. Burrus in the custody of the Harry
S. Truman Library document primarily his career as an Assistant Counselor
of Jackson County from l927 to l94l, as a friend and political supporter
of Harry S. Truman, as a U.S. Army officer and member of the Reserve
Officers Association, as a member of the Harry S. Truman Library Institute
for National and International Affairs board of directors, and as an
attorney for J. Vivian Truman and Mary Jane Truman and their estates.
This collection constitutes only about ten percent of the materials
accumulated by Rufus Burrus and other members of his family's law firm.
Most of Burrus's papers are in the custody of the Jackson County Historical
Society.

Size: 19 linear feet (about 38,000 pages)
Access: Open, with the exception that some material is closed in accordance with restrictions contained in the donor's deed of gift.
Copyright: Rufus B. Burrus II has donated his copyright interest in any unpublished writings in this collection or in any unpublished writings of Rufus B. Burrus that are among collections administered by this or any other repository administered by the federal government.
Processed by: Niel M. Johnson, Raymond H. Geselbracht and Anita
M. Heavener (l992); Dennins Bilger and Randy Sowell (2001); David Clark and Cassie Coffman (2012).

The papers of Rufus B. Burrus in the custody of the Harry S. Truman Library
document primarily his career as an Assistant County Counselor for the
Jackson County Court from l927 to l941, as an officer in the U.S. Army
and the U.S. Army Reserve, as a business associate, political supporter
and friend of Harry S. Truman, as an attorney for members of Truman's
family, as a member of the board of directors of the Harry S. Truman Library
Institute For National and International Affairs, and as an active supporter
of the Harry S. Truman Library.

After the death of Rufus B. Burrus in July l990, two archivists from the Truman Library surveyed the records and papers in Burrus's law office to identify files related to Harry S. Truman. A representative of the donor later spent several months surveying Burrus's papers, both those in his law office and those in other locations, and she shared the results of her survey with the Truman Library staff. The materials selected for donation to the Truman Library include files documenting most of the life and career of Rufus B. Burrus, except the bulk of those relating to his law practice; of these latter, only files relating to Harry S. Truman or his family were selected. The portion of Burrus's papers donated to the Truman Library is only about ten percent of the total collection. Most of the remainder, which includes records documenting the legal careers of Burrus himself and of his grandfather, father, and uncle, and of other attorneys who worked for the Burrus firm, was given to the Jackson County Historical Society. Smaller groups of material were given to the National Frontier Trails Center (relating to the Waggoner Gates Mill), the Blue Springs Historical Society, the Missouri State Archives, and the Texas State Archives.

Prior to giving the papers of Rufus B. Burrus to the Truman Library
and other archival repositories, the donor removed about five hundred
items of correspondence signed by Harry S. Truman and other prominent
people. Photocopies of the removed items were substituted for the original
documents in their original locations at least in every instance where
a defined file location existed. A second set of photocopies of these
items was segregated and numbered in the order in which they were discovered
in Burrus's papers. These photocopies comprise the Numerical File subseries
of the Harry S. Truman and Truman Family File; they include about 457
documents that are not present in photocopy form elsewhere in the Library's
portion of Burrus's papers.

The collection is divided into seven series: a Correspondence File, an Assistant County Counselor File, a U.S. Army File, a Reserve Officer Association File, a Subject File, a Harry S. Truman and Truman Family File, and a Harry S. Truman Library File.

The Correspondence File is divided into two subseries. The first, the Personal File, covers primarily the period l936 to l938, l944 to l953, and l957 to l964; it documents Burrus's friendship and business dealings with Harry S. Truman and other associates, and with members of his family. Despite the designation "personal" that Burrus gave to the material in this subseries, it includes documentation of his work as counsel for the Reconstruction Finance Corporation and of some other topics that are related more to his career than to his personal life. The second subseries, the Political File, documents primarily Burrus's involvement in local and state politics from l924 to l940, and the local and national campaigns of l948.

Although Burrus served as Assistant County Counselor of Jackson County from l927 to l94l, the Assistant County Counselor File documents his service only from l927 until l936. The series relates mainly to the construction of county roads. County budgeting and financing are also covered.

The U.S. Army File documents Burrus's service in the Army during World War II and in the Army Reserve from l927 to l94l and l945 to l975. The series includes information about Army Reserve summer training camps during these years, some of which Harry S. Truman attended. There are occasional references to Truman in the correspondence. The coverage of the series is erratic after about l954.

The Reserve Officers Association File documents Burrus's membership in the Reserve Officers Association. The series includes correspondence files for the period from l946 to l972 and for l976.

The Subject File consists in large part of clippings and other printed items, but also includes some correspondence. The series documents such subjects as the Community Savings and Loan Association, the Judge Richard Duncan Memorial, the Military Order of the World Wars, the General John J. Pershing Memorial In Kansas City, the Scottish Rite of the Masonic Order, and the Vietnam War. The series also includes files on such people as Richard Bolling, Omar Bradley, Rose Conway, Dwight D. Eisenhower, Gerald Ford, Barry Goldwater, Hubert Bumphrey, Herbert Hoover, Lyndon B. Johnson, Douglas MacArthur, Eugene McCarthy, George C. Marshall, Ronald Reagan, Eleanor Roosevelt, and Ike Skelton.

The Harry S. Truman and Truman Family File includes four subsries: a Chronological Subject File, a Numerical File, a Clippings File, and a Truman Family Legal File. The Chronological Subject File documents Harry S. Truman's career before and after his presidency, including his relationship with the Citizens Security Bank of Englewood, his senatorial elections of l934 and l940, the sale of the Truman family farm property, events in which Truman participated after his presidency, different enterprises with which Truman became associated, and discussions and evaluations of events that occurred during his presidency. The subseries also documents Burrus's participation in Truman's career, and his work after Truman's death to commemorate his life and accomplishments.

The Numerical File, the origin and basic character of which is described
above, contains primarily letters sent to Rufus Burrus by Harry S. Truman
and other prominent people. The correspondence relates to such subjects
as the construction of roads and bridges in Jackson County, the county
home for the indigent, school loans, property condemnations, county surveyor
reports, the Community Investment Company, the Truman family farm property,
the Masonic Temple in Grandview, and the estate of Harry S. Truman; and
such people as Fred Canfil, Strother J. Twyman, Solomon Young, Roy Roberts,
Roger Sermon, Richard Duncan, Jo Zach Miller, and Ted Malone. Of the 499
numbered items in this file, a numerical listing of which is appended
to this finding aid, 43 were removed from files in this collection. The
numbered items, the originals of which were taken from this collection,
are listed in brackets following the titles of the files from which they
were removed.

The Clippings File covers primarily Truman's presidency and the period
following l960. The articles that Burrus clipped are almost exclusively
from the Kansas City Star and the Independence Examiner.

The Truman Family Legal File documents the legal work that Rufus Burrus did for J. Vivian Truman and Mary Jane Truman, both during their lifetimes and in settling their estates. The series also has a small amount of material relating to Bess Truman and to J. Vivian Truman's children. Some of the material in this file has been restricted in accordance with the provisions of the donor's deed of gift. Categories of documents that are open in court records or state and local government records are also open in this series; consequently, wills and codicils, inventories and appraisements, executor's deeds, medical reports and certificates of death are open. Some communications involving the affairs of living persons or in which a lawyer client privilege may inhere have been kept closed.

The Harry S. Truman Library File has three subseries: a Harry S. Truman Library, Inc. File, which documents Burrus's association with the organization that planned and built the Harry S. Truman Library; a Harry S. Truman Library Institute for National and International Affairs File, which includes information about the awarding of grants to researchers, the planning of scholarly conferences, the publicizing of the Library's holdings and mission, and other Institute operations and programs; and a Harry S. Truman Library Events File, which documents primarily Burrus's participation in the Library's Fourth of July ceremonies and the meetings and other activities that are held each year at the time of Truman's birthday in early May.

A Miscellaneous File was added to the collection as an accretion in 2001 and 2012.
Arranged in alphabetical order, it consists of appointment books, correspondence, printed
material, and other items, mostly documenting the legal career and other
activities of Burrus, as well as his association with Harry S. Truman.
The letters from Truman in this series are photocopies of documents that
can also be found in an earlier series, the Harry S. Truman and Truman
Family File.

PERSONAL FILE, l936-38, l944-53, l957-64, l977,
l989: Correspondence and clippings relating to Rufus Burrus's
friendship and business dealings with Harry S. Truman, and to family
members, Army Reserve officers, and other personal friends and business
relations. Subjects covered include job recommendations, family
activities, politics, the Army Reserve, the legal concerns of the
Reconstruction Finance Corporation, and the American Bar Association.
The series also includes an essay about women in business on Independence
square in the early twentieth century. Arranged chronologically.

3-4

POLITICAL FILE, l924-40, l948: Correspondence
and clippings relating to such subjects as the l934 congressional
campaign of Jasper Bell, the Democratic National Convention of l936,
the presidential campaign of l936, President Roosevelt's "court
packing" plan, the career of Senator Bennet Clark, the presidential
campaign of l948, and local, state, and congressional politics in
l948. The series contains two lists of merchants in Jackson County
and in Independence in l933-34, apparently identifying donors to
Democratic Party candidates. Arranged chronologically.

Correspondence, petitions, summonses and other legal documents concerning Rufus Burrus's duties as Assistant County Counselor of Jackson County, Missouri, from l927 until l936. He served in this office until l94l, but the series does not include material for the period l937-4l. The material relates mainly to the construction of county roads and highways to such subjects as the acquisition of right of way, the settlement of damage claims, and construction contracts. County budgeting and financing problems are also covered. Arranged chronologically.

Correspondence, military service records, memoranda, rosters, bulletins, manuals, orders, clippings, and publications relating to Rufus Burrus's service in the Army during World War II and in the Army Reserve from l927 to l94l and l945 to l975. The series includes information about Army Reserve summer training camps during these years, some of which Harry S.Truman attended. There are occasional references to Truman in the correspondence. Arranged in an approximate chronological order.

Correspondence, memoranda, bulletins, newsletters, rosters, clippings and publications, most of which relate to Rufus Burrus's membership and participation in the Reserve Officers Association. The series includes a biographical statement on the military career of Rufus Burrus. Several correspondence files are placed first in the series, arranged chronologically, following which are subject files arranged in an approximate chronological order.

Correspondence, newsletters, clippings, articles, bulletins, essays, reports, and other materials relating to such subjects as the Armed Forces Council, Community Savings and Loan Association, Camp Crowder, Richard Duncan, the Military Order of the World Wars, the Scottish Rite, the Office of Price Stabilization, the General John J. Pershing Memorial, and the Vietnam War. Arranged alphabetically.

CHRONOLOGICAL SUBJECT FILE, l924-89: Correspondence,
reports, speeches and programs pertaining to the Citizens Security
Bank of Englewood, the Jackson County bond election of l928, Harry
S. Truman's senatorial campaigns of l934 and l940, the Truman family
farm property in Grandview, the powers of the President, civil liberties,
the Democratic National Convention of 1960, and Harry S. Truman's
Masonic career. Arranged in approximate chronological order by the
time period of the subject covered.

23-25

NUMERICAL FILE, l924-80: Photocopies of
approximately 500 items of correspondence the originals of which
were removed by the donor from this collection and from the collections
of Rufus Burrus's papers in the Jackson County Historical Society,
the Independence Frontier Trails Center, and other repositories.
Most of the items were signed by Harry S. Truman and occasionally
contain his marginal notes; other items were signed by Bess Truman,
Margaret Truman, Harriet Young, Dwight D. Eisenhower, Omar Bradley,
Mary Jane Truman, Walter Mondale, Harry Blackmun and Stuart Symington,
among others. The correspondence, consisting for the most part of
letters sent to Rufus Burrus, deals with such subjects as the construction
of roads and bridges in Jackson County; the county home for the
indigent; school loans; a lawsuit involving the Barr Insurance Company;
property condemnation; county surveyor reports; the McCune Home
for Boys; the Community Investment Company; John M. Steinhauser;
damage claims involving Jackson County's road building program;
the Social Security Act; Fred Canfil; Strother J. Twyman; Solomon
Young; Roy Roberts; Jackson County politics; Roger Sermon; Camp
Crowder; Richard Duncan; Jo Zach Miller; the elections of l944 and
l948; Ted Malone; political clubs; the Truman family farm in Grandview;
Truman family cemetery lots; the Masonic Temple in Grandview; the
Grandview chapter of the Order of the Eastern Star; the proposal
to award a Congressional Medal of Honor to Harry S. Truman; and
the estate of Harry S. Truman. Arranged according to a numerical
sequence assigned to the documents by a representative of the donor.
The sequence is that in which the documents were discovered in the
entire collection of Burrus's papers. A numerical listing of the
documents, which was prepared by the donor's representative, is
attached as an appendix to this finding aid.

25-33

CLIPPINGS FILE, l945-56, l960-89: Newspaper
clippings and a few articles from journals and magazines relating
to the life and career of Harry S. Truman. Arranged chronologically.

33-38

TRUMAN FAMILY LEGAL FILE, l936, l952-77.
Probate records relating to the estates of J. Vivian Truman and
Mary Jane Truman, including wills, orders for distribution, inventories
and appraisements, executor's deeds, medical reports, exception
letters, appraiser's reports on decedent's property, and tax closing
statements; correspondence, tax records, attorney's notes, and reports
concerning the two estates; Bess Truman's will and documentation
of the distribution of her property; and documents relating to the
sale of property in Grandview by the heirs of J. Vivian Truman.
Arranged by family member, with materials relating to J. Vivian
Truman filed first, then those relating to Mary Jane Truman, then
those relating to Bess Truman, and finally those relating to J.
Vivian Truman's children.

HARRY S. TRUMAN LIBRARY, INC. FILE, l950-64:
Minutes, bylaws, legal documents, reports, correspondence and memoranda
pertaining to the establishment and operations of the Harry S. Truman
Library, Inc., which planned and built the Harry S. Truman Library.
The series also documents the corporation's assistance to the Library
in the acquisition of research materials and in promoting public
use of its facilities and holdings. The corporation was succeeded
by the Harry S. Truman Library Institute for National and International
Affairs. Arranged in an approximate chronological order.

39-45

HARRY S. TRUMAN LIBRARY INSTITUTE FOR NATIONAL
AND INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS FILE, l957-88: Legal documents, correspondence,
memoranda, newsletters, tax statements, and financial reports pertaining
to the operations of the Harry S. Truman Library Institute for National
and International Affairs. The series documents the Institute's
efforts, in the words of its charter, "to encourage, foster and
assist the growth and development of the Harry S. Truman Library
as a national center for study and research." It includes information
about the acquisition of manuscript and other materials for the
Library's collections, the awarding of grants in aid to researchers,
the planning of scholarly conferences, and the publicizing of the
Library's holdings and mission. The articles of incorporation and
correspondence are placed first in the subseries, arranged chronologically,
and then follow several subject files, arranged in an approximate
chronological order.

45-48

HARRY S. TRUMAN LIBRARY EVENTS FILE, l956-88:
Correspondence, clippings, programs, notes and speech drafts relating
to events at the Truman Library, and especially to Fourth of July
ceremonies and to "Truman Week" activities held annually in early
May. Rufus Burrus was in charge of arrangements for the Fourth of
July ceremonies at the Library for many years. In the clippings
portion of this file are many articles on exhibits, manuscript acquisitions,
special programs, and notable visitors to the Library. A correspondence
file is placed first in the subseries, and then files on the Fourth
of July ceremonies and Truman Week activities, arranged in each
case chronologically, and then the clippings files, also arranged
chronologically.

Appointment books, correspondence, printed material, and other items mostly documenting
the legal career and other activities of Rufus B. Burrus and his association
with Harry S. Truman. Arranged in alphabetical order.

[1 of 4: rights of defendants, law of desccent and distribution]
[2 of 4: obituaries, including those of Oscar Moorman and George Aylward; legal ethics]
[3 of 4: visits to the Truman Library, family genealogy, Burrus's real estate holdings]
[4 of 4: due process]

Personal, l977 [includes numbers 478 and 479]

Personal, l989

[1 of 3: Missouri Institute for Justice; greetings from family members and friends]
[2 of 3: notes of John K. Hulston interview with Burrus relating to Harry S. Truman; responses of Alonzo Hamby to questions about Truman by Hulston]

Box 3

[3 of 3: notes of John K. Hulston interview with Burrus relating to Harry S. Truman; responses of Alonzo Hamby to questions about Truman by Hulston]

Political, l924 33 [official ballot and election results for the Independence city election of l926; Young Democratic Jefferson Club of Jackson County; clippings relating to county elections; Harry S. Truman's speech to the Real Estate Board, September 25, l93l; roster of merchants in Independence, l933]

State ex rel. vs. Harry S. Truman, et al., l932-33 [suit against the county relating to damage to private property because of a public road project; includes the court's opinion, autographed by Harry S. Truman, includes number 497]

[l of 3: Jackson County Democratic Club; testimonials for Truman by U.S. Senators; speeches and letters by Rufus Burrus; Burrus's reply to William Allen White editorial; roster of the Democratic State Convention; Truman and Lester Byam; editorial, June l7, l940; newspaper clippings]
[2 of 3: Jackson County Democratic Club; testimonials for Truman by
U.S. Senators; speeches and letters by Rufus Burrus; Burrus's reply
to William Allen White editorial; roster of the Democratic State Convention;
Truman and Lester Byam; Kansas City Star editorial, June 17,
1940; newspaper clippings. Includes numbers 493, 494, 495, 496]
[3 of 3: federal expenditures in Missouri; endorsement of Senator Truman by the newspaper Labor; Speech by Senator Randolph Hughes; campaign materials and transcript of opening rally, June 15, l940]

Correspondence, l943-53 [Burrus to Truman letters; opinion by Burrus relating to Congress's issuing a subpoena to the President]

Armory Dedication Ceremony, September 6, l95l [correspondence, clippings, and photographs relating to the dedicatiion of the Organized Reserve Corps Armory, Kansas City, Missouri, at which President Truman gave an address]

Assembly of God, l95l [release of restrictions in l974 and l975 on property deeded by Harry S. Truman in l95l]

President Truman Cosmopolitan Article, l95l [article on President Truman
by William Bradford Huie, and reactions to it]

Foreign Policy [Truman's handwritten note of January 27, l952 concerning the use of the atomic bomb to end the Korean war; reaction to Francis Lowenheim's article of August l980 on this issue]